Taiwania, 51(1): 53-57, 2006 An Observation on the Corymborkis veratrifolia (Reinw.) Bl. (Orchidaceae) from Lanyu, Taiwan Ching-Long Yeh(1,4), Chuan-Rong Yeh(2) and Chong-Sheng Leou(3) (Manuscript received 29 September, 2005; accepted 7 December, 2005) ABSTRACT: Corymborkis veratrifolia (Reinw.) Bl. (Orchidaceae), stem erect; leaves narrowly elliptic or narrowly elliptic-lanceolate; inflorescences axillary, branched; flowers white, from Lanyu, Taiwan is described and illustrated. The size of this plant found in Lanyu is the smallest C. veratrifolia being recorded in the world. KEY WORDS: Orchidaceae, Corymborkis veratrifolia, Morphology, Taxonomy, Taiwan. INTRODUCTION Corymborkis veratrifolia (Reinw.) Bl., Col. Orch. Ind. 125. pl. 42-43. 1859; Holttum, Fl. Malaya Morphological characters of genus 144-145. fig. 23-24. 1964 “Corymborchis”; Corymborkis are similar to those of the genus Garay et Sweet, Orch. S. Ryukyu Isl. 93. 1974; Tropidia. But Tropidia has dense inflorescences Ying, Col. Ill. Orch. Taiwan 1: 436. 1977 et 2: terminal and /or lateral, in contrast, Corymborkis’s 457. 1992; Seidenf. in Dansk Bot. Ark. 32: 114. inflorescences appear from the leaf axils, often more fig. 70. 1978; Dassanayake, Fl. Ceylon 325-327. than one per stem, having short peduncles and are fig. 143. 1981; Lang, Fl. Reip. Pop. Sinica 17: often branched. The genus Corymborkis extends to 126. pl. 16: 7. 1999. 管花蘭 Figs. 1 & 2 almost all tropical areas, with five species recognized (Comber, 2001). Corymborkis Hysteria veratrifolia Reinw. in Bl., Cat.: 99 (1823); veratrifolia is distributed from China, Japan nom. nud. & in Syll. Pl. Nov. 2: 5 (1825). Corymbis veratrifolia Rchb.f. in Flora 158: 184 (Ryukyu), Sikkim, India, Thailand, Sumatra, (1865); King et Pantiling, Orch. Sik.-Himal. 274. Borneo, Queensland and New Guinea, Fiji, pl. 354. 1898. Philippine to the west coast of Africa. Although this Corymborchis veratrifolia Bl., Fl. Jav. n.s. 1, Orch.: plant was not recorded in Flora of Taiwan edited in 105 (1858) 2000 (Su, 2000), it was found in Taiwan and described by Fukuyama in 1941 (Ying, 1990), and Terrestrial herb. Rhizome short, bearing subsequently being recorded by several investigators sympodial shoots. Roots fibrous, wiry, smooth, (Chen et al., 1999; Lang (ed.), 1999; Ying, 1977). In simple or branched, 3-3.5 mm in diameter. Stem the year of 2002, we re-found this species at Island 40-45 cm tall, 3.5-5.5 mm in diameter, subterete, Lanyu. After checking the fresh flowers on 19, Aug. rigid, solid, enveloped by leaf sheaths. Leaves many, 2005, we identified it as Corymborkis veratrifolia. spiral or more or less in 2 rows, glabrous, plicate, The study provides the description, habitat and elliptic-lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, 20-28 cm long, 7-9cm broad, caudate-acuminate at apex, photographs of Corymborkis veratrifolia in Taiwan. contracted and sheathing at base, bearing 7 primary veins, secondary veins between primary veins 1-3, TAXONOMIC TREATMENT veinlets between primary veins 15-25, sheath 4-4.8 cm long, longitudinally ribbed. Inflorescence ___________________________________ 1. Department of Forestry, National Pingtung University of axillary, erect, paniculate, 5-branched, 10 cm long, Science & Technology, 1, Hsuehfu Rd., Neipu, Pingtung 19-flowered, each branch with 2-6 flowers in 2 91201, Taiwan. rows; peduncle 4.5 cm long, with most of its length 2. PhD program of Department of Education, National Kaohsiung Normal University, 116, Heping 1st Rd., Kaohsiung City enveloped by leaf sheath; rachis minutely zigzag; 80283, Taiwan. bracts triangular-lanceolate, up to 1 cm long; floral 3. Retirant of The Experimental Forest of National Taiwan bracts triangular-ovate, cucullate, 4-7 mm long; University, 4-5, Hsiaping Rd., Chu-Shan, Nan-Tou Hsien ovary 6-9 mm long, 6-ribbed, straight or minutely 55764, Taiwan. twisted. Flowers non-resupinate, more or less 4. Corresponding author. Tel: 886-8-7703202 ext. 7152. Email: [email protected] arcuate or minutely twisted and facing varied directions, 20-30 mm long, light yellow-green 54 TAIWANIA Vol. 51, No. 1 Fig. 1. Corymborkis veratrifolia (Reinw.) Bl. A: Habitat. B: Habit. C: Flowers. D: Rhizome, shoots and roots. turning white, scented, the perianth approximate mm by 5-6 mm and rhombic-ovate when flattened, basally, spreading at upper half; sepals subsimilar, claw divergent to the column, conduplicate and independant at base, separated by the ridges of canaliculate, laterally 2-ridged within, ridges most petals and lip, narrowly spathulate, smooth in prominent at the middle part of the claw, decreasing abaxial side, without ridges, 15-21 mm long, upper their size and becoming inconspicuous towards both half navicular, with inflexed edges, lower half ends. Column erect, slender, clavate, 14-18 mm narrowed and grooved; petals as long as the sepals, long, dilated and somewhat fusiform at apex, 2.9-3.2 ridged abaxially, falcate, upper half lunar, flat, mm wide, bearing 2 auricles at lateral sides, arcuate, with undulate margin, lower half narrowed narrowly cylindricle below, auricles triangular; and shallowly grooved; lip 15-21 mm long, ridged anther 3.1 mm long, 1.1 mm wide, somewhat abaxially, spathulate, dilated to form a blade at the reniform; stigma 3-lobed, middle lobe occuping the upper third, contracted and unguiculate below, then lower half of rostellum, lateral ones deflexed; slightly dilated and adpressed to the column near the rostellum long triangular, elongated at apex to form base, blade ovate in outline, crisped and minutely a hamullus. undulate at edges, arcuately deflexed at apex, 6-7 Distribution: in mountain forest on western March, 2006 Yeh et al.: The Corymborkis veratrifolia from Lanyu 55 Fig. 2. Corymborkis veratrifolia (Reinw.) Bl. 1: Habit. 2: Leaf. 3: Inflorescence. 4: Floral bract. 5: Flower, side view. 6: Flower, ventral view. 7: Cross section of a flower at 5 mm above the ovary. 8: Dorsal sepal. 9: Lateral sepal. 10: Petal. 11: Lip. 12: Lip, flattened, dash lines on the claw showing ridges.13: Column and lip, side view. 14: Column, ventral view. 15-17: Apex of column, dorsal, ventral and side views. 18: Column, ventral view, anther removed, showing the clinandrium and hamullus. 19: Anther, side view. 20: anther, inside. (Drawned from fresh materials). region of the island of Lanyu ( Orchid Island, Botel inflorescences 10-17 cm long, flowers 2.5-4.5 cm Tabago, Fig. 3 ), Taiwan. long, the size of this plant in Lanyu is the smallest Flowering period: July to September. C. veratrifolia in the world. Specimen examined: Taitung County : Western part of We also observed many species of orchids on Lanyu, C.L. Yeh & C.R. Yeh 4031(PPI) 19, Aug., 2005. the location where we found Corymborkis Note: Compared to data recroded for C. veratrifolia, they are Didymoplexis pallens, veratrifolia elsewhere (Comber, 2001; Chen et al., Hetaeria oblongifolia, Habenaria stenopetala, 1999; Dassanayake (ed.), 1981), stems 1-3 meter Nervilia Lanyuensis, Nervilia sp., Tropidia somai high, leaves 25-45 cm long, 6-15 cm broad, and Zeuxine phillipinensis. Among them, Hetaeria 56 TAIWANIA Vol. 51, No. 1 LITERATURE CITED Comber, J. B. 2001. Orchids of Sumatra. Kew: Royal Botanic Garden, London, U.K. p. 37. Chen, S., Z. Tsi and Y. Luo. 1999. Native Orchids of China in Colour. Science Press. Peiking, China. p. 93. Dassanayake, M. D. (ed.). 1981. A Revised Handbook to the Flora of Ceylon. Vol. 2. fig. 143. Amerind Publ. Co. Ltd., New Dehli, India. pp. 325-327. Garay, L. A. and H. R. Sweet 1974. Orchids of Southern Ryukyu Islands. Bot. Mus. Harvard Univ., Cambridge, USA. pp. 93-94. Holttum, R. E. 1964. A Revised Flora of Malaya. Government Printing Office, Singapore, 3rd ed. pp. 144-145. King, G. and R. Pantling. 1898. Orchids of Sikkim-Himalaya. Bengal Secretariat Press, U.K. p. 274. Fig. 3. Location of Island Lanyu, south-eastern Taiwan. Lang, K. Y. (ed.). 1999. Flora Republica Popularis Sinica. 17. pl. 16: 7. Science Press, Peiking, oblongifolia (Yeh et al., 2005a ) and Zeuxine China. pp. 551. phillipinensis (Yeh et al., 2005b) are new recorded Seidenfaden, G. 1978. Orchid Genera in Thailand VI species to Taiwan; Didymoplexis pallens and Neottioideae Lindl. Dansk Botanisk Arkiv, Bind Tropidia somai are first records at Isl. Lanyu. 32, Nr. 2. Kobenharn, Denmark. pp. 114. The forest is frequently thinned by the Yami Su, H.-J. 2000. Orchidaceae. In: Huang, T.-C. (ed.), (Lanyu People) for shipbuilding, therefore it Fl. Taiwan 2nd ed. 5: 729-1086. Editorial provides proper sunlight spots and space for orchids. Committee of the Flora of Taiwan, Dept. Bot., The forest also confronts the typhoons from NTU, Taipei, Taiwan. Phillipine directly. Due to these two reasons, some Yeh, C.-L., C.-R. Yeh and C.-S. Leou. 2005a. new orchids have been found here. Hetaeria Oblogifolia (Bl.) Bl. (Orchidaceae), a In Lanyu, the species was found at elevations Newly Recorded Orchid in Taiwan. Taiwan about 200 m, windward, flat understory of the Journal of Forest Science 20: 313-317. forest. This type of rainforest has two canopy Yeh, C.-L., C.-R. Yeh and C.-S. Leou. 2005b. stratums. The upper canopy is about 9 m high, Zeuxine Philippinensis (Ames) Ames dominated by Ardisia sieboldii, Diospyros maritima, (Orchidaceae), a Newly Recorded Plant in Planchonella obovata and Ficus benjamina var. Taiwan. Taiwania 50: 1-6. benjamina, companied with Schefflera octophylla, Ying, S.-S. 1977. Coloured Illustrations of Antidesma pleuricum, Linociera cumingiana, Indigenous Orchids of Taiwan. Published by the Glochidion lanceolatum, Syzygium tripinnatum, author, Dept. Forestry, NTU, Taiwan. pp. 436. Elaeocarpus sphaericus etc. The understory are Ying, S.-S. 1990. Coloured Illustrations of dominated by Psychotria manillensis, companied Indigenous Orchids of Taiwan. Published by the with Calamus siphonospathus var. sublaevis, author, Dept. Forestry, NTU, Taiwan. pp. 457. Dracaena angustifolia, and the seedlings of Tarenna zeylanica, Neolitsea villosa, Celtis philippensis and Aglaia elliptifolia.